BUSTS OF GROW OPS JUST DROP IN BUCKET

Says Union Cop

The recent spate of marijuana grow operations shut down by police is just
scraping the surface, says the president of the Winnipeg Police
Association. "By a conservative estimate, there are 700-to-1,000 grow-ops
in the city," said Loren Schinkel.

Grow ops and organized crime are on the agenda for discussion by the 50
delegates of the Big 10 gathering of Canada's largest police unions
beginning Monday at the Canad Inn Fort Garry.

At the same time, another 80 delegates will meet for the western labour
conference.

Schinkel called for tougher sentencing for anyone convicted of a grow op to
combat the thought of making "easy money."

"There's so much money to be made. It's up to the courts. Maybe it would be
different if a grow op was located next to a judge's house," said Schinkel.

"You don't find grow ops in Grand Forks, N. D., because you go to prison
for 10 years. That's what's needed here."

Schinkel said the pendulum of justice has to swing back to put the rights
of society before the rights of an accused.

"When people accused of committing a crime are set free because of a
technicality, judges send a negative message to the front-line officers and
a positive message to the people who make a living from criminal
activities. When the scales of justice dip, then the public suffers."

Political Will

To combat organized crime, law enforcement not only needs the finances, but
the political will, from all levels of government.

"Society is losing to the criminals because police are being handcuffed on
how they do the job," said Schinkel, who believes a reverse onus should be
put on criminals to prove where they obtained their money.

Schinkel recalled the days when police were able to pull over
colour-wearing members of the Los Brovos outlaw motorcycle club "50 times
in a shift."

"We can't do that now, it's called profiling. If a person makes a conscious
choice to become a member of organized crime, it should be with the
expectation of police action," added Schinkel.